JPH02107808A - Roller bearing - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To improve the stress service life at a low cost by holding a large single roller provided with a curved surface capable of being brought into contact with any side of a raceway by a bearing carrier provided with a bearing extending in the radial direction between raceways of a housing and having a roller in its periphery. CONSTITUTION: A bearing ring 14 having raceways 20, 22 is provided on a housing provided on a drive shaft 12 side, and a bearing 34 is provided on a bearing carrier 36 extending in the radial direction from a spider member 37 provided on a driven shaft 32. A plurality of needle rollers 40 are provided in a rolling manner around the bearing carrier 36, a sleeve 42 having an inner surface 44 forming their raceway is provided, and a large single roller 46 slidable thereon in the axial direction is arranged. The large single roller 46 is rotated between the raceways 20, 22, and held by the spider 37 together with the sleeve 42 by a shoulder 48 and washers 52, 54 of the spider 37, a clip ring 55, and annular alignment springs 56, 57. Thus, the stress service life is improved at a low cost, and the roller bearing can be effectively used for a universal joint for driving front wheels.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to rolling contact bearings for mechanical parts or devices in which the bearings are configured for linear and slightly angular movements. More specifically, the present invention
Among other things, it is a roller bearing that is useful in front wheel drive universal joints for automobiles.

[Conventional technology]

In many front wheel drive passenger cars, the engine transmits power to the drive shaft through a transmission. Torque is transmitted to the driven shaft via a constant velocity torque transmission universal joint. The universal joint has a housing connected to a drive shaft, and the nousing includes five pairs of circumferentially equally spaced parallel tracks. The driven shaft has circumferentially equally spaced anti-friction bearings with rollers in contact with the raceway of the universal joint housing. The anti-friction bearing is configured so that the driven shaft can move linearly relative to the housing and can tilt relative to nousing.

In other applications, the bearing shaft would be the drive shaft and the housing shaft would be the driven shaft.

The nousing in the universal joint used in front wheel drive vehicles is 1
Made in various shapes. Many of these housings are constructed with circumferentially spaced tracks that are radially curved relative to the axis of the housing. An example of such a universal joint is the one by Michael A. Oline.
No. 4 U.S. Patent No. 4, November 19811, entitled "Articulating Transmission Joint Including Rollers" by A.
．． 11 glI, No. 900 and May 20, 1987
German Published Application DE 571G-962-A, filed in Japan. Other universal joints currently being made for use in front wheel drive vehicles include circumferentially spaced tracks that follow a curved path along which a single roller on one bearing moves. - Examples include Michael A.
No. 338,796, dated July 13, 19g2, entitled ``A Corresponding Transmission System with a Corresponding Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Corresponding Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission Device with a Compatible Transmission System with a Compatible Transmission System from the United States Patent No. 338,796.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,6 dated May 8, 1988 entitled "Roller Bearing" to Murphy et al.
No. 70 discloses a universal joint housing for use in front wheel drive vehicles that has circumferentially spaced parallel flat raceways that are biased. As shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,670, the bearing on the driven shaft is rectangular;
This shape was believed to be necessary to provide proper contact and stress along the contact line between the bearing and the housing raceway.

However, rectangular bearings and their components are very expensive.

Therefore, the first US patent! , 729.670, but the rectangular bearings shown in that patent are not necessarily required if it is desired to make a universal joint that is less expensive.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

The present invention provides a universal joint with a bearing of a type and shape different from that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,729,670, but which may be used with a universal joint housing of the type shown in said patent. It is.

[Means to solve the problem]

Briefly described, the present invention includes a bearing for use with a universal joint having a plurality of circumferentially spaced pairs of parallel, flat raceways/Usings. The bearing is mounted on a bearing support that extends radially from a rotatable shaft between one of the pairs of circumferentially spaced tracks. Each bearing has multiple rollers placed around the bearing support and a large single roller with a curved surface that contacts one raceway at one time and leaves a small gap from the other raceway. There is a roller. A cylindrical sleeve is mounted around the rollers. The inner surface of the sleeve forms the outer raceway of the rollers. The large single roller has a cylindrical inner surface that is slidably attached to the sleeve. A plurality of rollers and sleeves are rotatable about the bearing support but are disposed axially of the bearing support. The large single roller is rotatable about the bearing support and slidable axially on the sleeve.

〔Example〕

Referring to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, the constant velocity universal joint includes a housing 10 that is rotated by a drive shaft 12. As shown in FIG.

The drive shaft 12 may be rotated - for example, by a transmission of a front-wheel drive vehicle. The housing 10 has three circumferentially equally spaced ropes acting as bearing rings;
There are 16 and 1g. The bearing rings 114.16 and 18 are
parallel, flat tracks 20 and 22, each circumferentially spaced apart;
, 2 and 26. and 28 and 30.

The drive shaft 12 is connected to the snow gear 37 attached to the driven shaft 52.
) Rotate the Uzing 10. Three circumferentially spaced bearings 311 are each mounted on one of three circumferentially spaced bearing supports 36 extending radially from a spider member 57 connected to the driven shaft 32. There is. The driven shaft 32 may be connected, for example, to a constant speed universal joint that drives the front wheels of a passenger car.

As can be seen by referring to the arrows in FIG. 1, the drive shaft 12 rotates the driven shaft 2 in the same direction as the curved arrow 1, while at the same time the driven shaft 32
and 18 along spaced apart tracks in either direction. This configuration also allows for angular movement of the driven shaft 32 within the housing 10.

Referring to FIG. 5, each bearing support 56 has a driven shaft 52
and extending axially between a pair of spaced apart tracks.

Each bearing has a plurality of rollers, such as needle rollers UO, looped around the bearing support 56. Cylindrical sleeve 42
are attached around multiple rollers. Sleeve 11
The inner surface 411 of No. 2 serves as the outer raceway of the needle roller 110.

A large single roller 116 is attached to sleeve 112. The rollers 116 have cylindrical holes and can slide axially over the sleeve 112. Rollers 146 roll between a pair of parallel, planar, spaced apart housing tracks, such as tracks 20 and 22. Spider 57 includes an outwardly facing shoulder ugl, and each bearing support 56 has an annular groove 50 spaced axially from shoulder 118. A washer 52 is mounted on the upwardly facing shoulder u, 8 of the spider 57 and around the bearing support 36. A second washer 51+ is mounted around bearing support 36 and is axially spaced from washer 52.

A clip ring 55 in a groove 50 in the bearing support 36 holds the washers 52 and 511, needle roller 110 and sleeve 112 in a constant opposite position on the bearing support 36. The needle rollers 40 and sleeve 112 are axially fixed on the bearing support, but they rotate about the bearing support.

Annular centering springs 56 and 57, axially positioned by spaced apart grooves on sleeve 142, apply a spring bias to end faces 58 and 62, respectively, of single roller 116. The spring serves to center the single roller lj6 axially over the sleeve 142 when no torque is transmitted by the universal joint. Annular projections 70 and 72 on springs 56 and 57, respectively, extend into sleeve 112 only.

The sleeve u2 and the sleeve 116 rotate around the bearing support 56 at approximately the same rotational speed. but.

Since the rollers 46 can slide axially along the sleeve 42, the rollers 146 can slide axially relative to the sleeve 112 depending on the kinematic requirements of the joint.

Since the sliding motion of single roller 116 is relative to sleeve 42 and not directly along needle roller 110, there is no need to have a needle roller longer than sleeve 112.

In the constant velocity universal joints currently used.

The contact stress on the needle roller is very high and the contact stress on the single roller housing raceway is relatively low. for example,
The contact stress on a needle roller is twice the contact stress on a single roller housing raceway.

It can be five or even four times higher. Therefore, conventional universal joints are not best designed from a stress life standpoint.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a bearing that is specifically constructed to equalize needle roller contact stress and single roller housing raceway contact stress. This gives optimum stress life when needed. The outer periphery of the single roller 116 is curved. The periphery 66 of each needle roller IIO also has a curved surface in the elongated direction as well as in the circumferential direction of the needle roller. The cylindrical surface 119 and the cylindrical bore of the single roller 116 are the best locations for axial sliding since the contact stresses are lowest. The points of contact between the curved surface 611 and the housing raceway and the points of contact between the curved surface 66 of the needle roller and the sleeve inner raceway are as follows.

The structure is configured to optimize stress levels at the needle roller contact and the single roller raceway contact for a given set of joint operating conditions. In other words, needle rollers and bearing ring 1
The stress level at the contact point of the outer single roller 46 and the raceway when compared to the stress level at the contact point of i2 is virtually equalized and optimized.

An annular clasp 60 can be used to retain the clip ring 55 within the groove 50, as shown in the embodiment of FIG. Although not shown in Figure 1, a clasp may also be used with the embodiment of Figure 5 to retain the clip ring.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a constant velocity universal joint illustrating one way in which the novel bearing can be used; FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view showing the bearing of FIG. 1 in a housing; FIG. 5 is an enlarged exploded partial cross-sectional view of the bearing of FIGS. 1 and 2, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a second bearing embodiment. 12-1 drive shaft-11! , 1 20-50-one orbit, 32 36-one bearing support, 57 rollers, +42-one sleeve 1, ll! - one bearing ring, one driven shaft, 34 - one bearing, one spider, IIo - one needle 6 - one single roller.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rotating housing with a plurality of pairs of circumferentially spaced parallel flat tracks and a circumferentially spaced bearing support. a rotatable shaft, each bearing support extending radially from the shaft between a pair of tracks of the plurality of pairs of housing tracks, each bearing support having a bearing thereon, and each bearing support having a bearing thereon; is characterized by having a plurality of rollers around the bearing support, and further having a curved surface that rolls between a pair of spaced raceways in the housing and can be contacted by either of the raceways. A universal joint in which a single roller is held by said bearing support. 2. The universal joint of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of rollers around the bearing support has a curved periphery. 3. a rotatable shaft having a housing having a plurality of circumferentially spaced pairs of parallel flat tracks and a circumferentially spaced bearing support; Each bearing support extends radially from the shaft between a pair of tracks of the plurality of pairs of housing tracks, each bearing support has a bearing, and each bearing is connected to the bearing support. a single roller having a cylindrical inner surface, further comprising a cylindrical sleeve mounted around the plurality of rollers, the inner surface of the sleeve providing an outer raceway for the rollers; are mounted on the sleeve and roll between a pair of spaced tracks of the housing, the plurality of rollers and the sleeve being rotatable about the bearing support and axially attached to the bearing support. a universal joint, wherein the single roller is rotatable about the bearing support and slidable axially on the sleeve. 4. The universal joint of claim 3 further characterized in that the sleeve and the single roller rotate about the bearing support at approximately the same rotational speed. 5. A centering spring is mounted adjacent each axial end of said single roller for axially centering said single roller on the sleeve when torque is not transmitted by the universal joint. 5. The universal joint of claim 4, further characterized in that: 6. The universal joint of claim 5 further characterized in that said single roller has a curved surface that rolls between said pair of spaced raceways of said housing. 7. The universal joint of claim 6 further characterized in that said plurality of rollers about said bearing support each have a curved periphery.